Joel David Ridley pleaded guilty to illegal firearm possession and killing two bald eagles on the Lummi Reservation. Sentencing is set for Jan. 25, 2027.
SEATTLE — A Lummi Nation member pleaded guilty Thursday to illegally possessing a firearm and killing two bald eagles after a witness reported hearing gunshots and seeing an eagle fall from a tree on the reservation in February 2025.
Joel David Ridley, 39, entered the guilty pleas Oct. 1 in U.S. District Court in Seattle.
The plea stems from an incident in 2025, when the Lummi Nation Police Department was called after gunshots were reported on the reservation.
Witness Reports Hearing Gunshots
Court records show a witness out walking his dog heard a gunshot nearby. Walking home, he heard a second shot and watched someone retrieve an eagle from the ground.
The witness immediately called tribal police. While he was on the phone with a dispatcher, the witness then watched a second eagle drop from a tree on his property, badly wounded.
Lummi Nation officers responded, captured the injured bird and sent it for treatment.
Responding officers then soon located an SUV in the area matching the witness’s description. When the vehicle pulled into a nearby driveway, a records check tied it to Ridley.
Eagle Found in Ridley’s SUV
At the residence, officers found a dead bald eagle in the back seat of Ridley’s SUV. He was arrested after speaking with investigators in the driveway.
Officer then waited for a search warrant for the vehicle and upon the subsequent search, a .22-caliber Savage rifle was found hidden between the rear seats.
Federal law already barred Ridley from owning firearms after a 2003 first-degree assault conviction in Whatcom County Superior Court.
Examinations at the Whatcom Humane Society in Bellingham confirmed both eagles had been shot. Veterinarians determined that the surviving bird’s injuries were severe enough that it had to be euthanized.
Sentencing Set for January 2027
Ridley pleaded guilty to unlawful firearm possession and two violations of the federal Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. U.S. District Judge John H. Chun set sentencing for Jan. 25, 2027.
The firearm charge carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Each eagle protection violation is punishable by up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The Lummi Nation Police Department and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Celia Lee, who also serves as a tribal liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, is prosecuting Ridley.
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